Marsha Blackburn: “over the past few months, pro- democracy protestors in Hong Kong have captivated the American consciousness with one of…”

“over the past few months, pro- democracy protestors in Hong Kong have captivated the American consciousness with one of the most stunning mass protests in recent memory. Hong Kong people are no strangers to suppression. They are used to the censorship, digital stalking, and persecution embraced by their overlords in Beijing, and they have seen firsthand the dangers of tyranny. Watching these protests play out got me thinking about the core values that we as the American people share with the Hong Kong people and with so many others around the globe. There is really an interesting dichotomy at play: You can turn on the TV right now and see an entire population fighting desperately on behalf of free speech, self-expression, and the right to question their leaders' decisions. Meanwhile, just a few countries away, the loudest voices in the newsroom are begging for just the opposite. Here in the U.S., Americans are constantly being asked if freedom is really worth the fight. Is it worth the never-ending battle to maintain it? The answer is absolutely. When Americans look at the protests in Hong Kong, they do not see a foreign policy gray area; they see scores of revolutionaries fighting an evil regime. They identify with the disrupters, and they cheer for the underdogs who do not pull their punches, which is why, in 2016, they sent a disrupter to the White House.…”